Nations is a civilization-building board game that was released in 2013 by Lautapelit.fi. It is designed for 1-5 players, with a recommended player count of 3. The game is known for its deep strategy and complex decision-making, as players will build their own nations from scratch and compete against each other for resources and power.
Game Components of Nations
Player Boards: Each player has a nation board with starting resources and growth tracks.Progress Cards: These include buildings, advisors, wonders, and conquering cards that dictate resources, military strength, stability, and books (education and learning).Event Cards: Introduced at the beginning of each round, these cards trigger during the resolution phase, often imposing penalties or benefits.Workers/Citizens: Represented by meeples, these are used to assign to buildings, military, and other tasks.Resources: Gold, rocks, food, books, military strength, and stability, tracked using large cardboard tokens and the main board.War and Raid Cards: Used to initiate conflicts or raids.Architects: Required to build wonders and certain structures.
How To Setup Nations
To set up Nations, each player selects a nation to represent and places their colored meeples on the player board. The game board is prepared by adding event cards and progress cards to the central board. Players place their citizens on the growth tracks and receive starting resources based on their nation. The maintenance phase involves adding new progress cards, growing the nation, and adding architects. This setup ensures all players are ready to begin the action phase.
Gameplay Mechanics and Game Objective
Phases: The game is divided into Maintenance, Action, and Resolution phases.Maintenance Phase: Prepare the board for the upcoming round by adding event cards and progress cards, growing the nation, and adding architects.Action Phase: Players take turns buying progress cards, deploying citizens, hiring architects, or using special actions.Resolution Phase: Resources are produced, player order is determined by military strength, wars are resolved, and events are triggered.Turn Order: Determined by military strength, which influences the order of actions and the impact of events.Resource Management: Players must manage resources such as gold, rocks, food, books, military strength, and stability.Events and Wars: Events and wars introduce randomness and challenges, requiring players to adapt their strategies.Victory Points: Earned through various means including books, military strength, stability, and resources. The player with the most victory points at the end of the game wins.
Player Experience
Playing Nations is a deep strategic experience where players lead their nation through four ages of time. The game requires constant adaptation due to the random nature of progress cards and events. Players must balance resource production, military strength, stability, and educational advancement to maximize their victory points. The game’s European gameplay style emphasizes indirect conflict, where each player’s actions significantly influence others.
Pros
Deep Strategy: Offers a complex and engaging gameplay experience.Adaptability: Players must adapt to random events and card draws.Multiple Paths to Victory: Allows players to focus on different strategies such as resource management, military strength, or educational advancement.Engaging Mechanics: Combines resource management, worker placement, and card drafting in a cohesive manner.
Cons
Randomness: The randomness of progress cards and events can be challenging to plan around.Lengthy Gameplay: Can take up to 200 minutes to complete.Anti-Climactic Ending: Some players find the final round to be less exciting as it focuses on maximizing remaining points.Limited Variety in Progress Cards: Some rounds may lack certain types of cards, which can affect gameplay.
Personal Thoughts on Nations
Nations is ideal for fans of civilization-building and strategy games who enjoy managing resources and adapting to random challenges. It is not suited for those seeking quick, light-hearted games due to its complex mechanics and lengthy playtime. The game’s depth and variability make it a great choice for players looking for a challenging and immersive experience. However, it may not be the best fit for new gamers due to its intricate rules and strategies.
We are supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission, at no extra cost for you. Learn more.
